July 15, 2004

Office of Cultural Affairs defends city’s percent per art program

AVCA members still leery about art’s high cost

By Sheila Sanchez
Staff Writer

San Jose’s public art program representatives went on the defensive Monday evening saying their sometimes-expensive projects build long-term value of public spaces and increase community identity and pride.

Speaking to members of the Almaden Valley Community Association, who have expressed concern about Title 22 of the municipal code, which mandates that 2 percent of the city’s capital improvement projects be spent on art, public art stewards said they believe the money is well spent.

“The perceived value of this program rests in every person’s mind…Citizens have to decide for themselves whether this is adding value,” said Jerry Allen, director of the city’s Office of Cultural Affairs (OCA), after a slide presentation explaining to AVCA members the program’s goals and outcomes.

But neither the fancy art slides nor the lengthy explanations about the value of public art could convince AVCA member Al Day that some of the projects’ price tags are reasonable.

“A $180,000 [price tag] for a cat-and-dog sculpture at the new animal shelter?” inquired an obviously frustrated Day. “It’s a waste of taxpayers’ dollars.”

Allen highlighted the program’s positives saying San Jose is one of eight cities in the nation that have distinguished themselves as having the best public art programs.

“We’re proud of that,” he said. “We have a program that is community oriented and that tries to marry art making and public involvement. We, in San Jose, probably afford to our neighborhood and community groups more authority in managing the program and in selecting the artists involved than any program in the country.”

San Jose is also one of 400 municipalities in the country that has the percent per art program for public projects, including the 50 largest cities in the nation.

Day and other AVCA members are worried about the airport’s expansion project estimated to cost $2.9 billion and that a 2 percent art mandate would be unreasonably high.

Allen said the budget for the airport’s north concourse is $3.85 million with the airport’s overall public art budget approaching $10 million.

Ernest Guzman, former chairman of the San Jose Public Library Commission, said although citizens have a right to question public art expenditures, they need to realize that “public art is vital to keep our community attractive not just to ourselves, but to the people invested in the community.”

Don House, an Almaden resident who attended the meeting, said he supports Title 22 and doesn’t think the 2 percent is excessive. “We have a responsibility to ourselves and to the community to not turn our back on the art.

It has such a huge meaningful statement. We need to have it as part of our public projects,” House said.

Ben Y. Miyaji, chairman of the city’s Arts Commission, commenting on the concerns, said, “The art is in the eye of the beholder. Art, by its nature, is controversial,” Miyaji said, after the meeting. “Art is so personal and subjective. While we’re sensitive to residents’ concerns about public art, the process includes as many community members as possible.

“Public art is a conduit for community to directly affect their environment,” he said.

Meanwhile Allen said an important part of the city’s public art program has been the reflection of many of the city’s histories that reinforce its cultural infrastructure to reach a deeper level of meaning and tell a deeper story than old-fashioned bronze images of heroic figures, mostly “white men” on horses.

“We’re trying to say more than that,” he said, adding that the OCA and the city’s Arts Commission have undertaken an extensive program of public art commemorations of the city’s culturally layered past with commemorations like the Memorial to Japanese-Americans interned during World War II; the Ohlone way of life; the establishment of the Pueblo San Jose de Guadalupe as California’s first civil community; and the Chicano activist and educator, Dr. Ernesto Galarza. “We want to tell the stories not just show (residents) a picture of a famous person,” Allen said.

Amy Moody, a Cambrian resident, expressed satisfaction with the public art program because she said it has allowed her and library patrons the freedom to choose an artist of their liking to represent what’s important for the Cambrian Library. “It was about getting a feel for what the people want and we believe that’s important,” Moody said.

“I want to emphasize that public art is about allowing the community to participate in the planning process in creating our civic spaces,” Allen agreed.

The art connoisseurs were somewhat miffed at the cold shoulder they received from AVCA members in light of the accomplishments the city has made in the arts.

Last month, the national nonprofit organization Americans for the Arts, presented the first annual Public Art Network Award to the late Harriet Traurig, director of San Jose’s public art program for five years. She died of cancer in January.

The prestigious award was created to recognize and honor innovative and creative contributions and commitment in the field of public art. The award is going to be named after her, an honor for the city and its public art projects.

The city’s “Recolecciones” art project at the Martin Luther King Jr. Library, under North Carolina artist Mel Chin, has also been selected as one of the best 39 public art projects in the country. Mary Rubin, the city’s senior public art project manager, will be making a presentation about the library’s project at the Americans for the Arts National Convention in Washington, D.C., July 14-19.